Action star Keanu Reeves was supposed to adopt one of the most ridiculous names ever 41 years ago

Many Hollywood stars are not known by their real names. This fate almost happened to Keanu Reeves too…

When young actors try to break into Hollywood, they often face pressure to conform to industry expectations – even when it comes to their own name. Keanu Reeves spoke about just such an experience from his early years in a conversation on the “New Heights” podcast (via Variety).

When he moved to Los Angeles at the age of 20, his manager at the time immediately suggested he change his name. Reeves, who was already working as an actor in Toronto when he was 16, remembered this moment as a kind of welcome from the film world:

“I got out of my car and my manager said, ‘We want to change your name.’ It’s a typical welcome-to-Hollywood moment.”

Several other stars followed the suggestion and adopted a new name. You can find a selection in our video:

Keanu Reeves initially wanted to call himself Chuck Spadina

This suggestion triggered a real identity crisis for Reeves. He began to think about what he could call himself if he accepted the suggestion. However, his first approach led to a pretty ridiculous-sounding result, because the new name would have been more suitable for a typical 80s macho action hero:

“My middle name is Charles, so I thought… Chuck? And I grew up on Spadina Street, so Chuck Spadina.”

Other ideas included names like “Templeton” or “KC Reeves”. Under the latter, he was actually featured in an early production, a 1986 TV movie for The Magical World of Disney. But it didn’t feel right:

“And then I just couldn’t do it. I was at auditions and they said, ‘KC Reeves.’ And I didn’t even respond. Six months later I said, ‘I’m not doing this anymore.’ This is a Hollywood moment.”

In a previous interview with Jimmy Fallon in 2017 (via Entertainment Weekly), Reeves had previously mentioned that the full name being considered at the time was “Templeton Paige Taylor.” Luckily, he returned to his real name in time – before taking on bigger roles in films like “Dangerous Liaisons” and “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure.”

Reeves is currently back on a promotional tour for his new film “Good Fortune”, a comedy directed by Aziz Ansari and starring Seth Rogen and Keke Palmer. Reeves plays a guardian angel who loses his wings while trying to teach someone that money doesn’t solve all problems. “Good Fortune” has been in German cinemas since October 16th.